Railway-signal.



H. A, HOESCHEN.

RAILWAY SIGNAL. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 1.1913.

Patented Feb. 8,1916.

Henry A. Hoe'schen.

THE COLUMBIA PLAIQOGRAPH'CO; WASHINGTON, D. c.

HENRY A. HOESCHEN, or OMAHA, NEBRAsKA, AssIGNoR T0 HoEscrIEN MANUFAC- .TURING coMrANY, or OMAHA, NEBRASKA, A CORPORATION or NEBRASKA.

nAILwAY-sIeNAL.

Application filed March 7, 1913. Serial No. 752,762.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY A.HoEsorIEN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Omaha, in the county of Douglas and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railway- Signals, of which the following is a specification. V

My invention relates to railway signaling mechanism, and especially to signals for use at railway crossingsto indicate the approach of trains to said crossings.

It is the object of my invention to provide, in connection with signal actuating mechanism such as shown in my applica-' tion filed December 3, 1911, Serial No. 665,57 5, means for actuating and controlling a. swinging bell to produce an audible signal, and a swinging arm or semaphore to form a visual signal. 5

Further objects of my invention relate to specific details of the mechanism, and will be more fully set forth hereinafter.

Constructions embodying my invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inwvhich 5 Figure 1 is a side View of the mechanism, partly in section, Fig. 2-is a detail rear View of the escapement devices, and the connections therefrom to the bell, the bell being shown in'section, and portions of the connecting-rod, being broken away, .Fig. 3 is a detail sectional view through the vergebeam and a part of the escapement wheel, 7

the section being on the plane of the line ce-az of Fig. 2, Fig; 4 is. a detail section of the resilient connecting member, Fig. 5 is a detail front view of the escape-wheel, stop, and stop-release mechanism, and Fig. 6;is a side view of the signal head. i V 5 In the construction shown the general arrangement of the signal mechanism is similar to that shown in my application above mentioned. At or near the railway crossing to be protected there is erected a suitable supporting column 1 which carries a casing 2 inclosing the actuating mechanism, and from the upper part of the casing a tubular column portion 3 extends up and supports the signal head. The signal head has a circular bottom-plate 4 to which is secured the frame 5. On the upper part of said frame is'carried the conical cap or Specification of Letters Eatent.

Patented Feb. 8, 191a.

hood 6, and between the hood and bottomplate is disposed a cylindrical cage 7 of metallic fabric. suitable frame 8 which carries the motor and controlling mechanism. I preferably employ as a motor, a mechanical energy-storing mechanism wherein a spring is wound up and placed under-tension by movements of a part of the railway track during the passage of trains over it, as fully described in my application before referred to. The casing 9 inclosing the motor spring is connected with a gear 10 which meshes with a pinion 11 carried on a shaft 12 journaled in the frame 8. On the shaft 12 is carried a toothed escape-wheel 13 which has on the front side thereof one or more small rollers '14. A stop-block 15 is pivotally mounted on the frame 8 in the relation to the escape-wheel indicated in Fig. 5, the stop-block having portions adapted to be engaged by the rollers 14. A stoparm 16 is fixedly connected. with the stopblock, and the upper end. of said arm is engageable by a latch 17 pivoted on the frame. The weight of the stop-blocktends to move the arm to a position at which .it

WVithin the casing 2 is a will be engaged and held by the latch, and,

when so held, the stop-block is retained in such a position that the rollers 14 cannot pass it. WVhen the latch is disengaged from the arm, the pressure of the roller upon the stop-block swings the sameupwardly, the

arm and block passing momentarily to the positions shown by dotted lines in Fig. 5,

so that the roller may pass under the stopblock and thewheel revolve as indicated.

After the roller has passed out of engage ment with the block, the same can return to its normal position and the stop-arm reengage the latch, so that when the roller again engages the block the movement of the wheel will be stopped unless the latch is held out of engagement with the arm or is again. moved out of such engagement. For lifting the latch to releasethe stop-arm and permit operation of the mechanism, any

suitable means may be employed, such as an electromagnet 18 having a movablear'mature 19 positioned so that when it is drawn toward the magnet it will lift the latch. The electromagnet may, of course, be connected in a suitable electrical circuit or circuits controlled by movements of trains toward the crossing at which the signal mechanism "is placed.

On the frame 8 is pivotally mounted a verge-beam 20 which carries at its ends the pallets 21. When the escape-wheel is per1nitted to move by the releasing of the stop therefor, as described, the pallets are alternately engaged by the inclined faces of the teeth of the wheel, and pushed upwardly so that an oscillating movement of the vergebeam is caused thereby. As one of the pallets is being moved upwardly the other pallet pa-sses down into the space between two of the teeth, and as the one tooth passes out of engagement with the first pallet the radial face of another tooth strikes the other pallet, so that movement of the wheel is mo mentarily stopped, being renewed when the second pallet has moved slightly upward so as to be engaged by the inclined face instead of the radial face of the tooth. Thus the wheel has an intermittent rotative movement. At one side of the wheel, adjacent and parallel to the inclined faces of the teeth, are laterally projecting lips 22, and in one end of the vergebeam is secured a hookpallet 23 adapted to engage the lower side of each of the lips while the adjoining pallet 21 engages the inclined face of the respective tooth. The parts are so arranged that when movement of the wheel is stopped by engage- 'ment of one of the rollers 14 with the stopblock 15, as shown in Fig. 5,the verge-beam and wheel will be in the relative positions shown in Fig. 2.

To one end of the verge-beam is pivotally connected a member which extends upwardly therefrom. through the colu-mn-por tion 3 to the signal head. The said connecting member comprises a lower rod-portion 2 1, an upper rod-portion 25, and the yielding connecting mechanism shown in detail in F 4. Referring to said figure, a tube 26 is provided having at its central part an integral dividing plate or head 27, and having screwed in its ends plugs 28 through which the rod-portions 2% and 25 pass slidably. Each of the rod-portions has a head at the end thereof which fits slidably within the bore of the tube, and one of the rods has a stop-collar 29 adapted to engage the endplug 28 to limit outward movement of the rod relative to the tube. A helical spring 30 collar 29 in engagement with the end-plug.

A similar spring 31 is arranged around the other rod between the head thereof and the end-plug, said spring also being constantly under a'certain compression, and normally holding the rod-head in engagement with the center-head 27. By the described conconnected the upper end of the rod 25,

struction, the length of the connecting member remains constant when the member is not subject to a compressive stress greater than the initial compression of the spring 3 or to a tensile stress greater than the initial compression of the spring 31. But, should the compressive or tensile stresses in the member become greater than the initial compression of the respective springs, then the member may become shorter or longer, as the case may be, by compression of one of the springs, the rod engaging the respective spring sliding up or down relatively to the casing-tube.

Within the cage 7 of the signal head is a bell 32 which is pivotally mounted on the frame 5 by means of a yoke 33 having trun- 1110118 34 extending through the frame, as shown. The bell is so balanced that it will normally hang in the vertical position shown, but with its center of gravity only slightly below the axis of the trunnions, so that it may be easily swung or oscillated on said axis. The bell is provided with a swinging clapper 35 which is hung within it in the ordinary manner. A finger 3G is extended down from the upper end of the bell to a point at one side of the axis of the trunnlons, and. to said finger is pivotally bv the. 1,011

which the oscillating movements of verge-beam are communicated to the One of the trunnions 34- has secured on the outer end thereof a pendent arm or blade 37 which normally hangs in the vertical position shown in Fig. 6, and swings with the bell to positions such as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 1.

Vhen the signal is in operation the swiim ing blade 37 forms a visual signal operating conjointly with the audible signal caused bv the bell. k K

By the use of the hook-pallet 23 waich, when the operation of the actuating mechm nism is stopped, engages one of the lips 29 as described, the bell and the blade are pre vented from being swung except daringthe time that the actuating mechanism is in oneration. and are ouicklv brought to rest when the movement of the escape-wheel is stopped.

Excessive stresses upon thecomparativelv delicate actuating mechanism are avoided bv the use of the yieldable or resilient devices in the member connecting the verge-beam and bell. Thus, after an operation of'the signal, when the movement of the vergebeam is stopped, the momentum of the bell and blade, instead of being transmitted posi tively to the verge-beam, may be expended in compressing the springs 30 and 31, it being noted that the initial compression of said springs is such that, without being further compressed, they will transmit the force normally required to swing the bell. and

blade. The yieldable connecting member may also come into action in the event that the movement of the blade or bell be prevented by the accumulation upon the signal head of snow, sleet or the like, or in case the movement of the signals should be interfered with by malicious persons, or the blade be forcibly moved while the actuating mechanism is in the locked or non-operating position. i

It should be especially noted that the movements of the bell and swinging blade are like those of a pendulum, in that they will have a fixed normal period of oscillation and will thus regulate the movement of the escapement and actuating mechanism. By the use of these relatively massive parts, having a comparatively slow period of oscillation, for regulating the speed of the actuating mechanism, the necessity for'any other regulating mechanism is done away with,

and it is thus made possible for the entire mechanism to consist of relatively few and simple parts. Also, on account of the comparatively slow period of oscillation of the swinging parts, the number of movements made during a given period of operation is reduced to a minimum, with the result that there is a minimum amount of wear and tear upon the mechanism, and aminimum amount of power required to operate it Now, having described my invention,

'what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: 1 V

1. In a railway signal mechanism, an escape-wheel, a motor for driving the same, a stop for the wheel, means for releasing the stop, a verge-beam actuated'by the escapewheel, and a pivotally supported swinging bell yieldably connected 'with the vergebeam and adapted to act as a pendulum to regulate the movement of the verge-beam.

2. In a railway signal mechanism, a pendent visual signal member, a motor, oscillating escapement mechanism actuated by the motor, and yieldable connecting means between the escapement mechanism and signal member, whereby the latter'is swung as a pendulum and regulates the movement of the escapement mechanism.

3. In a railway signal mechanism, a

spring motor, an escape-Wheel driven thereby, a verge-beam and pallets adapted to be oscillated by the escape-wheel, and pivotally mounted swinging signals including a bell yieldably connected with the verge-beam and adapted to act as a pendulum to regulate the movement of the verge-beam.

- 4:. In a railway signal mechanism, swing-V ing signal members, amotor, a wheel actuated thereby, an oscillating part actuated by the wheel, means for stopping the wheel at definite positions, interengaging means on the wheel and oscillating part to prevent movement of the latter when the wheel is stopped, means including yieldable members connecting the oscillating part and signal members, and means for holding the yieldable members constantly under a stressas the connecting means in actuating the signals.

6. In a railway signal mechanism, swinging signals, an oscillating actuating part, and means connecting the actuating part and swinging signals, said connecting means including yieldable parts constantly held un -der a stress as great as the force normally transmitted by the connecting means.

7 In a railway signal mechanism, a relatively massive bell mounted to swing on an.

great as the force normally transmitted by In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses.

HENRY A. HOESCHEN.

Witnesses: I

H. P. RYNER, D. O. BARNELL.

,Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner 'of Patents,

Washington, D. G. Y 

